Later today and into this evening, portions of central North Dakota could be center stage for some late summer severe weather.
Jeff Schield is a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Bismarck. He says a strong cold front is moving into the area behind high levels of moisture. He says residents near Jamestown may have noticed thick fog this morning, and low clouds further also showcased higher dew points.
He says late this afternoon and possibly into this evening, supercells will start to develop in central North Dakota. And he says there is a good possibility the storms could be severe – bringing with them aggressive impacts.
"Especially toward the start of the event, we could have some supercell storms develop - and then, as the storms move east, it will be more or less filling in a line of storms. With that, we do have potential for tennis ball sized hail, especially with the initial storms. Will everyone receive that - no, but the potential is there for some of the stronger storms to have that. Also, 70 mile per hour wind gusts will be possible, especially as it moves into the James River Valley and that area. We also can't rule out a tornado or two possibly developing."
Shield says as the day goes on it will be important to keep your eyes to the skies, and have trusted ways to receive breaking weather news. He reminds residents that “watches” are when conditions are favorable for severe storms to develop, and “warnings” are when those storms are active.